Roofing



Oct. 4, 1938. E. R. GREENLl-:E

ROOFING Filed Oct. '7, 1937 INVENTOR ee/f/.ee

"ATTORNEY- Patented Oct. 4, 1938 UNITED srg'rg rarita grise 3 Claims.

This invention relates to roofing and the object of the invention is to provide a roofing composed of overlapping horizontal strips so arranged that any seepage between the horizontal strips is caught and carried back to the surface of the roong to prevent leakage. l

Another object of the invention is to provide a roofing formed of a series of composite layers of material laid in horizontal overlapping relation in which the upper edge of each layer is provided with a series of notches arranged to catch any seepage between the layers and retain the same or guide the seepage back to the roofing surface and prevent it from working through and leaking.

A further object of the invention is to provide composite shingles provided with notches in the top edge so that any tendency of water to run along the top edge of a shingle is prevented by the water becoming trapped in the notches.

A further object of the invention is to provide a shingle of the character described provided with a groove in the under-surface of the shingle beneath each notch arranged to .guide the trapped water from the notches out to the surface of the roofing and thus prevent leakage.

These objects and the several novel features of the invention are hereinafter more fully described and claimed and the preferred form of construction by which these objects are attained is shown in the accompanying drawing in Which- Fig. 1 is a plan view of a roof provided with a valley and showing the shingles arranged on the roof and over the valley.

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the underside of one of the shingle strips provided with substantially V-shaped notches.

Fig. 3 is a perspective View of an alternative form of shingle strip provided with substantially square notches in the upper edge.

Fig. 4 is a section taken on line 4 4 of Fig. 1.

This invention is particularly designed to prevent the leakage occurring from water entering rows of shingles from the valley and traveling along the upper edge of the rows of shingles to some distant point and then leaking through. In Fig. l, a valley strip I is shown and strip shingles 2 are laid on the roof to overlie the valley strip in the usual manner. These strip shingles 2 are cut off at an angle at the end by the roofer as will be understood more particularly at 3 in Fig. 2 to overlie the valley strip so that both roof surfaces drain toward the valley. The water entering the valley will then travel downwardly longitudinally of the valley strip but the edges of the shingle strips presented to the valley strip appear as (Cl. 10S-7) shown in Figl so that water may enterbetween the shingle strips vat the point 4 where one shingle strip overlies the upper edge of the next succeeding shingle strip. With ordinary strip shingles, the water entering at the points 4 may travel hori- 5 zontally along the upper edges of the shingle strips until the accumulation is suniciently great as to cause leakage ata point, for instance, some distance from the Valley. This type of leak is rather hard to nd due to the fact that the leakage actu- 10 ally occurs at some point in the roof at a distance from the valley where the water originally enters between the shingle strips. In order to overcome this leakage, I have provided each shingle strip 2 shown in Fig. 2 with a series of notches 5 along 15 the upper edge so that when the water tends to travel along the upper edge of the shingle strip it will become trapped in these notches.

The notches alone are suicient to stop most leaks of this type by trapping the water, but in 2o order to drain the trapped water back to the roof surface, the underside of each shingle strip may be provided with a series of shallow grooves 6 leading from the bottom of each notch to the lower edge of the shingle or to the slots 'l which 25 are made in the shingle strip in order to appear on the roof as individual shingles. These shallow grooves 6 thus provide shallow conduits which slope downwardly at the roof slope and the trapped water may pass through these shallow 30 conduits formed between the channels and the surface of the next shingle strip therebeneath, Fig. 2 being a View of the back or underside of the shingle strip. As the water passes through the shallow channels G, it is of course carried to the 35 lower edge of the shingle strip thus being brought out to the roof surface to drain olf the roof in the usual manner.

In Fig. 3, I have illustrated an alternative form of structure in which the notches 8 are substan- 40 tially square while the grooves 6 are the same as the grooves 6 shown in Fig. 2. In Fig. 3, the shingle is shown in its actual position on the roof with the grooves on the underside of the shingle. In laying the roof, the roofer usually cuts the shingle strips oif at an angle at the edge 3 on the strips which are to overlie the valley. This is done in order to bring the edges of the shingle strips parallel with the valley and by providing each strip with a series of spaced notches and 50 spaced grooves the strip may be cut off at an angle at any point desired without aifecting the action of the shingle in carrying the leakage back to the surface of the roof.

While I have described this invention in connection with strip shingles, it will Work as effectively With single shingles or even with rolled roofing. The important feature is the notches to trap the leakage and the secondary feature is the shallow grooves to carry the leakage back to the roof surface.

I have described this invention as used in roof valleys but it is as .effective in use at flashing points and along the rake strip at the outer edges of the roof.

From the foregoing description it becomes evident that the device is very simple and efficient in operation, will automatically prevent seepage and leakage from the cause described, does not add' expense to the roofing and provides a device which accomplishes the objects described.

Having thus fully described my invention, its utility and mode of operation, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is- 1. In a roong, a shingle member arranged to be laid in horizontal overlapping relation with other shingle members, each shingle member being provided with a series of spaced notches in the upper edge and with a groove extending transverseh7 of each shingle from each notch to the lower edge of each shingle on the underside.

2. In a roofing shingle, a shingle member having a series of spaced notches in the upper edge extending through the shingle from front to back and a series of spaced grooves extending transversely of each shingle, each groove opening into one of the notches in the upper edge of the shingle.

3. In a roong shingle, a shingle member having a series of notches in the upper edge and provided with a series of grooves in the underside leading from each notch to the lower edge of the shingle.

EARLE R. GREENLEE. 

